USC head coach Clay Helton has to worry about the mindset of his coaching staff going into Friday’s Pac-12 game, then make sure they can keep their personnel organized on special teams, avoid sideline warnings and save their timeouts for the most crucial moments in the game. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)

USC did not play a game last week so it had extra time to prepare for Stanford and address its shortcomings against UCLA.

The easy part was identifying the problems because the Trojans made enough mistakes that fans refrained from cheering when the UCLA game ended. So here are 10 things for USC to fix against the Cardinal:

1. Ignore distractions: Here it is the week of the Pac-12 title game and what is a popular topic around the program? Whether there will be changes to the coaching staff after the season. And this refers to forced changes, not coaches getting hired at other schools.

Will it affect the coaches’ mindset at the game?

2. Pray for the cornerbacks: Perhaps the week off allowed cornerback Jack Jones time to reflect on a rough November. Iman Marshall returned from an injury to play against UCLA. He escaped scrutiny because Jones gave up two touchdowns and a 41-yard completion.

David Shaw obviously wants to rely on Heisman Trophy candidate Bryce Love, but he has to see if quarterback K.J. Costello can burn a USC secondary that seemed in a free fall before getting a bye.

Some of it also appears to be coaching. “It looks like they are changing their technique on every play,” said a Pac-12 assistant coach, who did not wish to be identified.

Not having a consistent philosophy certainly makes things tougher.

3. Don’t get a delay of game penalty on a punt: USC finds all kinds of ways to commit penalties but against UCLA it got a delay of game on a punt. The only explanation is being disorganized.

4. Make sure the offensive line plays like it did in the first Stanford game: The high point of the season for the offensive line occurred in Game 2. That is quite an indictment today, but if USC can replicate that performance it will win Friday night in Santa Clara.

Right guard Viane Talamaivao, who is out for the season, played in that game. Left guard Chris Brown played his best game of the season. After the game, Stanford’s defensive line was heavily criticized.

So it will be interesting to see if the Cardinal improved at all at the line of scrimmage.

5. Cut down on special-teams penalties: USC’s special teams committed four penalties against UCLA, including two on the kickoff team. This has been an inauspicious year for special teams and more penalties could prove disastrous in a Pac-12 title game.

6. Rediscover the tight end: One of the regrets of this season has to be the play of tight end Daniel Imatorbhebhe, who spent most of the season recovering from a pulled thigh muscle. He was projected to be a breakout performer before the season.

But he has yet to play a game to match last year’s eye-catching effort against Washington. There are only two games left, so now would be a good time for Imatorbhebhe to regain his old form if he is 100 percent healthy.

7 Control the sideline: USC is basically running amateur hour on its sideline during games. It got two sideline warnings against Arizona and one against UCLA. Maybe that is why the Trojans burn so many timeouts.

8. Remember the past: In the first meeting, Stanford had two tight ends and a fullback on the field and USC lined up in a nickel defense. Love went 75 yards for a touchdown. Defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast needs to avoid making those kinds of mistakes Friday.

9. Conserve timeouts: It was not smart move for quarterback Sam Darnold to scramble on the final play of the first half against UCLA, getting tackled at the 5-yard line, which allowed the clock to expire. But it was even worse because USC did not have any timeouts left.

For some reason, Clay Helton loves to burn timeouts, especially in the first half. Sometimes, it actually matters.

10. Fix the running game: USC rushed for 153 yards against UCLA, the fewest the Bruins allowed this season. That is because UCLA loaded up the box to focus on the run. USC needs to make adjustments if Stanford tries the same approach.